Historical context
19th April 2018
Historically teaching has been a
female dominated profession with very few males entering the industry (Crisp
& King, 2016;Williams, 2012; Sargent, 2005). Statistics show a decrease of men working in the
Early Childhood Education (ECE) sector between 1992 and 2010. Male teachers
made up 2.3% of the workforce in 1992 dropping to a low of 1% in 2005 and
slowly building back up to 1.80% in 2010. The number of male teachers halved between
1988 and 2005. There needs to be a balance of male and female role models in
ECE (Farquhar et al. 2006).
Generally, the culture within the
ECE sector male teachers appear to be always welcomed with open arms and
encourage them but the statistics of retention show a very different picture. Sargent
(2005) proposed two circumstances present that contribute to the gender
inequality in the workplace. The first circumstance is that majority of staff is
female dominated and secondly that the nature of the work involved is
considered ‘woman’s work’. With the high ratio of female teachers in the
workforce comes the notion of conforming with the masses, something that does
not appeal to males entering the profession who see themselves as needed and individual
(Crisp & King, 2016). The notion of ‘woman’s work’ has traditionally been
deterrent for males who generally prefer a position of stature, this coupled
with low wages directly influence choice (Sargent, 2005). Men are more often
than not the main earners in the family which leads them to seek higher paid
professions leaving only a small portion of males willing to take a lower paid
job for their own personal gratification (Williams, 2012).
Gender stereotypes open the door
for ridicule and embarrassment, and a feeling of lower self-worth from being
judged by people who see the work as feminine. (Sargent, 2005). A huge
influence on the inequality of male to female teachers has been the topic of
sexual abuse. These stereotypes were reinforced in the early 1990s when two
sexual abuse cases were reported. This
resulted in one male teacher, Peter Ellis being convicted of sexual abuse. This
unfortunately influenced negatively on people’s perception of men in early
childhood education which increased individual male teacher’s anxiety of being
accused of sexual misconduct (Shaham, 1991). Farquhar, Cablk, Buckingham, Butler and
Ballantyne (2006) note the premise of veiled sexism in the industry. The lack
of men involved in the early childhood education sector is not seen as an
issue. Crisp and King (2016) note that while woman are naturally accepted into
teaching roles in ECE males are questioned and interrogated for their reasoning
as to why they wish to enter the profession.
References
Crisp, T.,
& King, J. R. (2016). "I just love kids . . . is that a
problem?": Desire, suspicion, and
other good reasons men don't choose early childhood education. Taboo, 15(1),
41-60. Retrieved from ProQuest.
Farquhar, S., Cablk, L.,
Buckingham, A., Butler, D., Ballantyne, R (2006) Men at work; Sexism in early childhood. Retrieved
from www.childforum.com.
Sargent, P.
(2005). The gendering of men in early childhood education. Sex Roles, 52(3-4),
251-259. doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-005-1300-x
Shaham, D. (1991) Male teachers in early childhood
education; Self & social perceptions.
Retrieved
from ERIC.
Williams, A.
(2012). Accentuating the positive. Men in early childhood education . Early
Education, 51, 22-26.
Crisp, T.,
& King, J. R. (2016). "I just love kids . . . is that a
problem?": Desire, suspicion, and
other good reasons men don't choose early childhood education. Taboo, 15(1), 41-60. Retrieved from ProQuest.
Farquhar, S., Cablk, L.,
Buckingham, A., Butler, D., Ballantyne, R (2006) Men at work; Sexism in early childhood. Retrieved
from www.childforum.com.
Sargent, P.
(2005). The gendering of men in early childhood education. Sex Roles, 52(3-4),
251-259. doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-005-1300-x
Shaham, D. (1991) Male teachers in early childhood
education; Self & social perceptions.
Retrieved
from ERIC.
Williams, A.
(2012). Accentuating the positive. Men in early childhood education . Early
Education, 51, 22-26.
I can not believe that in 2010 there was 1.80% of men in Early childhood education in NZ! Like you have mentioned, the gender stereotypes that are out in the community are disappointing and ECE would thrive with more positive male role models working in the industry. The fact that men are questioned as to why they would want to work and care for children is terrible. We need more positive men like you to hang in there and help change the statistics!
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